Analyzing News
Key message
The analysis of different types of news and comparison through several sources will develop youngster's critical thinking both for preventing radicalisation towards populist, discriminatory and persuasives discourses from violent and extremists groups and for starting a de-radicalisation process of young people already involved in these groups.
Key words: critical thinking, social awareness, data analysis
Summary
Young people are confronted to a huge amount of information and need to distinguish news that seek to create one opinion instead of relaying a determined information. In other words, youngsters need to be able to develop an analitical vision of the messages around them and distinguish the message intention beyond its structure or main arguments.
LessKey message
The analysis of different types of news and comparison through several sources will develop youngster's critical thinking both for preventing radicalisation towards populist, discriminatory and persuasives discourses from violent and extremists groups and for starting a de-radicalisation process of young people already involved in these groups.
Key words: critical thinking, social awareness, data analysis
Summary
Young people are confronted to a huge amount of information and need to distinguish news that seek to create one opinion instead of relaying a determined information. In other words, youngsters need to be able to develop an analitical vision of the messages around them and distinguish the message intention beyond its structure or main arguments.
Key message
The analysis of different types of news and comparison through several sources will develop youngster's critical thinking both for preventing radicalisation towards populist, discriminatory and persuasives discourses from violent and extremists groups and for starting a de-radicalisation process of young people already involved in these groups.
Key words: critical thinking, social awareness, data analysis
Summary
Young people are confronted to a huge amount of information and need to distinguish news that seek to create one opinion instead of relaying a determined information. In other words, youngsters need to be able to develop an analitical vision of the messages around them and distinguish the message intention beyond its structure or main arguments.
- Module
- Prevention
- Group size
- small
- medium
- Duration
- 30 min
- 45 min
- 1 hour
- Group age
- 12 - 15
- 16 - 19
Exercise Category: Activities / Exercises
CC - Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
Purpose
- Enforce a reflexive and critical behaviour in analysing the information relayed by the conventional and social media.
- Understand the general structure of the news and think about implicit questions that interfere in the editing and publication of it.
- Raise interest regarding the screening and analysis of news related with different subjects in the social sphere.
Description
Step 1: Prepare a brainstorming about what is a new and its structure. What are the news for? For which purpose are the news created? Does the content change according to the sources? Which is the structure of the news?
Step 2: Select 3-4 news and form groups. Optional: the groups can be formed by dividing each new into 3-4 sections (title, picture, content, etc.)and assigning one section per participant who will have to guess his/her groups ‘members by completing the new with the sections of the other participants. Each group must analyse it according to the following questions: What is happening or happened? Who is taking or took part of it? When does it take place or took place? Where? How? and Why?
Type of news: you can select several types of news or the same news from different media and make comparison between them (this last option is recommended with young people over the age of 14, or duly experienced in information analysis). The news should be related with problematic issues or social conflicts, the defence of human rights or citizen and democratic participation.
Step 3: Make a pool session based on the analysis proposed by each group an launch a reflection on the intentionality and non-implicit aspects of the analysed news (within sub-groups or among the whole group): Do you think that some of these stories have another intention apart from giving information? Which one? Why? Why do you think that the redactor of the news decided to relay this information? Do you believe that if the solution proposed in each story was implemented this would end with the problem (e.g. in case of news dealing with conflicts or groups’ proposals)? For what purpose or intention could we publish a story? In which media would we publish it? Why?
Optional developments:
1. Media professionals can be invited to encourage the participation of young people as well as to solve the doubts which may arise.
2. Ask youngsters to redact a story about a subject of their interest following the necessary steps to draw up a news (described in steps 2 and 4) and try to publish it (in the blog/group’s website or a digital newspaper, etc.).
3. Ask them to select news from different media (social networks, digital newspapers, television, etc.), analyse it and present it to the rest of the group.
Materials needed
paper, pen, 3-4 recent news.
Methodology
Discussion group
Advice for Trainer
- The teacher/trainer/educator will have to prepare previously the news to be analysed during the activity.
- It is recommended to use the same thematic in all the selected news (e.g. citizen participation, immigration, etc.). It is suggested not to use strongly politicised news and/or directly involved with extremism (ideological or religious).
Source / Literature
García A. (n.a). Materiales didácticos para trabajar la participación ciudadana. Institut Paulo Freire and Ayuntamiento de Sevilla. Sevilla